Bugaku mask of Ryō-ō, the 'Dragon
King'

Bugaku is a courtly ritual dance which has
survived in Japan since the Heian period (794-1185). In the Edo
period it was particularly popular with the samurai and the
intellectual middle
classes.

This is the mask
for Ryō-ō, the Dragon King, a character who appears in a Chinese
story from the Northern Qi dynasty (550-77). He was so handsome
that he had to wear a fearful mask into battle so that his enemies
would be terrified and his allies would not be distracted. The mask
has a bristling moustache and beard and four enormous black teeth.
A moveable chin piece hangs from cords, giving added life to the
fierce expression of the mask. The whole is topped by a grotesque
horned beast with clawed fore-feet.